Nelly, Not Nelson
by TifaBee
Summary: Nelly Woods first met Racetrack at closing time, then again every night after that. But when Nelly herself has to become a Newsie to help her family with money problems, will she be able to tell him, or become someone else?
1. After Midnight

Disclaimer: I do not own Newsies, Disney does. I just own Nelly and her family.

* * *

**Nelly's PoV**

**1900**

**Woods Races**

"Nelly, work your magic, will ya? We needa close, and he's been here all night." my dad said to me as I finished cleaning off the windows in our box. I looked out enough to see some kid leaning over the railing, head drooped and hair covered by what looked like one of the golf caps my Papa lets me wear. The races had just ended, and just about the entire place was empty, except for that kid. The guy we bough the racetrack off of said that kids hung around and bet on the horses a lot, so I assumed this was one of them.

Okay, let me explain a bit. My name's Nelly Woods, I'm sixteen, and I just moved to New York city a few weeks ago from Scranton, Pennsylvania, coal mining center of Lackawanna County. For the past few years, we've been contemplating moving, and so finally, we did. And to New York! The only reason we've been thinking about moving was because of my dad; he owned a racetrack in the Poconos, but buissness began to slow down, so we bought one here. Sheepshead Races is now Woods Races, plain and simple.

This was the first night that we got to run the place, so I stayed from school to watch Coal -my horse- race.

I eyed the kid for a little while before I actually walked outside. He didn't look very tall, or old, for that matter. Maybe about my age or so, I really couldn't tell. And it didn't look like he knew I was there anyway, so I decided to have some fun while I was there.

"Everybody empty out! We gotta close up!" I shouted. The kid nearly jumped three feet into the air. It was dead quiet before I made my little announcement, and it was dark enough for me to see the stars peaking through the navy sky. It was really peaceful.

The kid's eyes widened and he gripped his shirt by where his heart was. "Jesus, ya scared the crud outta me!" he grumbled. "Ya can't juss go 'round yellin' like ya own the place."

"I can and I do. Mind telling me why you're moping around here before I kick you out?"

He frowned, then shook his head. I felt like he was looking at me weird. Probably because; a) I was a girl, b) I was a girl who owned a racetrack, and c) I was a girl who owned a racetrack who was dressed in pin stripe pants. I noticed a while ago that most of the girls around here wore long, ugly skirts. Most girls did back home, too, but I still wore pants. I felt comfortable.

"Sheepshead. It got sold ta _you_?" he questioned, raising one of his dark eyebrows. I took a guess that he was Italian. His hair was dark, his eyes were dark, and his skin was a bit olive. If anything, he looked like the guy version of me. My hair was a very dark, thick brown, my eyes just a little lighter than that, and my skin was tan. I was a full-blooded Italian.

"Yeah. Got a problem with that?" I fired back, crossing my arms over my chest. That was another indication that I very much hated; most Italian girls have a very large chest, starting from about age nine or ten and on. It wasn't something most girls were proud of.

"Juss as long as I can bet, I don't care." he smiled, but it wasn't a normal smile, it was more of a 'take that' smile.

I got an idea just then. We were standing about two yards away from each other, so it was easy for me to build up tension when I started walking toward him, a small smirk creeping across my face. He didn't seem to know what I was doing, because he had a confused look on his face. It was when I stopped that he gulped; I had walked so close to him that the tips of our shoes touched, and I had leaned foreward, so out noses were only an inch apart.

"One lap. I bet you the black horse will win. I win, you leave one race earlier than you usually do. You win, you can stay as long as you like. Deal?"

Now I got a real smile out of him. Well, sort of. It was more half smile half smirk, but a smile none the less. "Deal." he spit into his hand and held it out.

"Ew..." I sighed, but went ahead and spit into my own hand and shook. Then I cupped my hands around my mouth and shouted at the track. "One more lap, guys. Coal and Jersey!" the jockeys started moaning, but agreed anyway.

"Prepare to lose, kid." I smirked, moving from in front of him to next to him, my hands gripping the rail. He turned and watched, his arms folded. "Go!" I shouted, and they were off.

Coal started out strong, leading for more than half of the track. But then a blur of carmel passed by him and crossed the line before he could. Both of the horses skidded to a halt and were led back to their stables.

"Thanks guys." I called, a hint of disappointment in my voice. Coal hardly ever lost, but I guess you couldn't win them all. I tapped my finger against the rail, enjoying the cling sound my ring made against the metal. I looked at the kid, who was smiling.

"What was the 'bout losin?" he asked, smiling. I shrugged it off. So he got to stay as long as he wanted, big deal. "Now, what was the deal again?"

I sighed heavily. "I win, you leave a race earlier than you usually do, you win you stay as long as you want. That means as many races as you like, not stay until three hours after closing."

He laughed. "You didn't say that, girly."

I frowned, rolling my eyes. I wanted to slug him.

"Whats your name, anyways?" he then asked.

"Nelly Woods, Scranton, Pennsylvania."

"Coal miner, huh? Interesting."

"And you?"

"Names Anthony. Friends call me Racetrack-"

"Can't imagine why." I mumbled. He shook his head, either annoyed or amused with me.

"I'm from heah. Not _heah_ heah, but New York heah."

I nodded. Most people who came were from the area, or at least that was how it was back home.

"I'll go now tanight. Guess I'll see ya tamarrow, Nelly." He nodded at me before turning around and walking away. I had to admit, no matter how many times I've kicked people out of the racetracks, this was the first time I really didn't want to. He was just about the cutest boy I've seen since I moved here.

My dad tapped me on the shoulder and knocked me out of my trance. "Time to go home, Nel. Good work."

* * *

A/N: First chapter up! Please R&R. 


	2. You Want Me to Do What?

Disclaimer: I do not own Newsies, Disney does. I just own Nelly and her family.

* * *

**Nelly's PoV**

**Woods Races**

For the past few weeks I've been helping my dad work at night, just to see him. I usually go right after school was out, and now that it's summer, I go right after I wake up. He's usually there selling his papers, but then watches the races. I've caught him multiple times looking for me. I know he was looking for me because he stands in the same spot, pacing back and forth, his eyes wandering all over the crowd until he finds me. Then he smiles, and I can barely walk.

Sometimes we just watch the races, not saying a word to each other, yet screaming our heads off at the horses. Sometimes we make friendly bets, and sometimes we play poker, just to pass time. And sometimes I bring him to the stables, and introduce him to the horses. He favors Jersey, the mare that beat Coal in our race, while I favor, of course, Coal.

Which is why we bet against each other most of the time.

"C'mon Coal! Run! You can win this!" I cheered, jumping up and down in the stands. The summer sun beat down on my head and the heat was starting to catch up with me. I wasn't dressed in anything that would attract too much heat; just a pair of my dad's old shorts and one of his shirts. Really, his clothes were more comfortable than mine were sometimes.

"He'll neva beat Jersey." Racetrack chuckled, shaking his head. He took off his hat and wiped the sweet off his forehead with his arm. But before he could put it back on his head, I snatched his cap from his hand and placed it on my own noggin. He turned his head to the side and gave me an amused/annoyed look, like he always did. "He didn't win yet!" he complained, referring to our bet. The deal was, if I won, I got his hat. If he won, he got my ring. So I just pointed to the track to indicate that Coal was, infact, ahead of Jersey. Racetrack's expression faded as Coal crossed the finish line in third place, two places before Jersey.

"I gots a hat!" I smiled.

* * *

**Woods House**

"Nelly, we have to talk to you," my mother said once I got home. She had called dad at the races and told him to come home with me immediately. I was a bit bummed to leave Racetrack, but he just shrugged and said he understood. So we left for home.

Our house is just another apartment building in Manhattan, like most people have. It's a three room place, one room for me, one for my parents, one for the kitchen, which is where we are right now.

"Now, Nelly, I have to- where'd you get that hat?" she eyed the cap on top of my head and my cheecks flushed a light shade of pink. How would I explain that, huh? _'Oh, I bet some kid that Coal would beat Jersey and he did. Nothing big.'_ No. My mom hates it when I do stuff like that.

"Oh, I just found it at the track." my dad told her. I smiled. At first, he really didn't care for Racetrack, but after a while he grew on him. It felt nice to know he approved of him.

"Oh, okay. Well, what I have to say is... I got fired from my job."

I nearly fell over. My mom was a waitress at Tibby's, a local place to just go and eat. But without her working, that would leave my dad the only working person in our house, and that would mean we still wouldn't have all that much money on our hands. But I didn't really understand why my parents started looking at me the way they were. They couldn't possibly want _me_ to get a job, could they?

"Wait, so, what does this have to do with me?"

My mom hesitated before answering. "We want you to become a news boy for extra money."

* * *

A/N: Sooo, whatcha think? If anyone has any idea or characters (non-Newsies characters), then let me have 'em! Read and Review! 


	3. Brothers and Sisters

Disclaimer: I do not own Newsies, Disney does. I just own Nelly and her family.

* * *

**Nelly's PoV**

**Woods House**

"Um, aren't news boys... boys?" I asked, not bothering to hide the bit of annoyance in my voice. How was I, a girl, supposed to become a news boy? I couldn't just go out and be all 'poof I'm a guy,' could I? It wasn't possible!

"Technically, yes, they are. But I won't have a daughter of mine go and be with boys all day. Do you know what boys think about? All they want is-"

"Dad! Dad! Stop! Ew! No more!" I waved my hands in the air in front of my face. I really didn't need to hear all of that. I had tons of guy friends back in Scranton, and they were ten times tougher than a bunch of news boys. Breaker boys is what they were, and they withstood just about everything.

My dad frowned and nodded his head. "Just listen to me, Nelly," he said. "People have mistaken you for a boy before, and people probably still will. If you hide your hair under that cap and-"

"You want me to pretend to be a boy?" I cut to the chase. Sometimes it was just boring to hear people beat around the bush instead of getting straight to the point.

"Yes." my dad nodded his head, his eyes closed. "You start tomarrow."

"Whatever." I hissed and went straight to my room.

* * *

**Racetrack's PoV**

**Manhattan Lodging House**

I left a while after she did.

The races just weren't the same without her there cheering with me. Sure, I gambled, but I didn't win anything. And aparently it showed, 'cause the guys knew somethin' was up.

"Ya goilfriend leave ya or sumthin'?" Jack Kelly asked me as I got up the stairs and into the bunks. I gave him a dirty look and searched for a cigar.

"Snipes, you take my cigar?" He just turned around like he didn't hear me. I guess I was in a pretty bad mood. I blame it on losin' me hat.

"Hey, where's ya hat go?" Mush asked me, sittin' next to me on the bed.

"Eh, I lost it," I grumbled. Just about ev'ry head in the room loked at me.

"Ya lost?"

"Ta who?"

"It was a bet, wasn't it?"

"Ya lose ta your goilfriend?"

"Will ya shut up!" I couldn't take it anymore. "She ain't me goilfriend and I didn't lose. Now, whose up for some poker?" I took out my cards and started to shuffle. We all went for the Poker table.

* * *

**Nelly's PoV**

**-The Next Day-**

My hair was stuffed in my cap, I was back in my dad's clothes, and I had suspenders on, even though I didn't need them. I couldn't take me chances. No one, and I mean no one, could figure out that I was a girl. The shirt was baggy enough to hide my chest, so I knew that was taken care of. And thanks to me being an alto, my voice was already deep, enough if I were a girl.

So that's why when I went to get my papers, nobody said anything. I mean, I heard guys behind me asking if I were new, but that was about it. It wasn't until I was second in line to get my stuff that I heard the guy in front of me.

"Fifty papes, Weasel," Racetrack said as he took out a cigar and a match. I gasped sharply and heald my breath while he lit the match. I didn't mean to blow it out so harshly, but I did, and the flame went out. I let out a small squeak and covered my mouth with both of my hands. He turned and looked at me, glaring, but then he stopped and just narrowed his eyes at me.

"Where'd ya get that ring a yours?" he asked. It took me a while before I realized that I was still wearing my spoon ring- the same one I bet just yesterday. I licked my lips before answering him.

"Oh, I've had it for a while. Why?" he looked at me closer, and the guy behind the bars became agrivated.

"Hurry it up, will ya!" he complained. Racetrack just moved on and sat next to a tall boy with blonde hair and a bandana, but I could tell he was watching me.

"Fifty," I said shakily. I slid my change under the bars for the papers and moved on, but the guy and Race stopped me.

"Ya new?" the boy asked me. I nodded my head slowly, not bothering to look up.

"Got a name?" Race asked, lighting his cigar that he tried to light before. I nodded my head again. "Well? What is it?"

"Nell-" I stopped, realizing I had to make something up. "son. Nelson Woods." I mumbled. I finally looked up to see Racetrack's eyes widen only slightly.

"You know a Nelly?" he then asked. I nodded again. This time when I looked at him, I saw a small smile. And that made me smile.

"She's my sister."

* * *

A/N: Thanks all who sent reviews! This chapters a bit more... confusing, in my opinion, but that doesn't matter; I want to know what _you_ think! Sooo... R&R! 


	4. Scumbags and StepDads

Disclaimer: I do not own Newsies, Disney does. I just own Nelly and her family.

* * *

**Nelly's PoV**

I don't think I've ever seen Racetrack so confused since I've met him. His eyes went wide, then squinted, his mouth hung open as if he were going to say something, but nothing came out, and his head tilted to the right. It was pretty cute, really, to see him all confused like that. I couldn't help but smirk a little at the sight.

"She... neva told me she had a brudda," he said slowly. And that was true; I never mentioned to him that I had a brother, only because I don't. I really never told him anything about my family, other than the fact that I have a mom, dad, dog, and horse.

"Well..." I tried to think of something quick to say, "that's because we don't get along so great. We're not the closests siblings." I nodded my head, deciding that that was a good enough lie. Sometimes if oyu don't like a person in your family, you don't mention them, and it's as if they don't exist. To the person you're talking to, anyway.

"Really..." he trailed off, looking me up and down. "Ya know, youse two look a lot alike. You twins?" he was looking me straight in the eyes, and I could feel my cheeks heating up, so I quickly nodded my head and avoided looking directly at him. "Thought so. Hey, whear'd ya get that hat?" he reached out to snatch the cap off of my head, but I swatted his hand away.

"Oh, it's yo-" then I thought of something, something that would really make him believe I wasn't myself. If I wasn't so close with myself (gee, that's confusing), then that would mean we wouldn't talk. And if we didn't talk... "It's my sister's. I stole it offa her bedpost this morning while she was asleep. I think she won it of some kid at the tracks. She has a problem. How'd you know her, anyway?" that was clueless enough, or at least I thought it was.

"It's my hat. She won it offa me. We watch the races togetha." he explained, as if I should have known what he was talking about. "What, youse two don't talk?"

"Your sistas Race's goilfriend?" the tall boy asked me. I blinked at him for a while, realizing that I had no idea who the hell he was. Then I looked at Racetrack with semi-wide eyes, but he just looked down and took a drag (or whatever it's called) from his cigar.

"Oooh," I nodded, as if it finally dawned on me that I knew who he was. "_You're_ the kid from the tracks that she talks about when I'm trying to ignore her," I wagged me finger next to my cheek. "Gotcha."

That made him look up. "_What_?" he yanked that thing out his mouth faster than I've seen Coal complete a quarter of a mile. It made my eyebrows raise.

"Yeah..." I sighed, trying to think of something else to say. "Oh, and she won't be at the tracks today. She's a bit... pissed off." it was the best excuse for me not being there when he sells his papers that I could think of. But he didn't seem to buy it.

"About what? She's always so... _happy_." that was true, or at least partically true; I was always happy when I was around him.

"Oh, our father called this morning and she got really mad. It didn't bother me, but she really hates him." which wasn't a lie; my father really did call me this morning, and I really did hate him.

"I thought she loved her fatha. They always play the harmonica togetha fa cash." I was hoping he wouldn't question that, because the answer was something I didn't ever want to tell him. It was when I started looking around, trying to avoid the question, that I realized just about all the news boys who were in line were listening to me. I felt as if my throat tightened up.

"Now where ah my mannas?" the tall boy shook his head, his blond hair swaying slightly from one side of his forehead to the other. "I'm Jack, this heah is David, his brudda Les, Boots, Mush, Skittery, Crutchy..." he went on naming these unusual names, and each guy nodded at me. Then he stopped and slapped Race on the back. "An ya should ahready know Racetrack."

"H-hi," I hesitated, trying to keep my voice as low as I found believable. I rubbed my bicep, then squeezed it, a nervous habbit of mine. Racetrack seemed to notice this, because he shook his head and tossed his cigar aside.

"Youse two ah too much alike." he murmured. I swallowed and looked down, not knowing how to respond to that. Then he said something that made me look up: "You sell wit me." I almost got whip lash from how fast my head shot up. That would mean I got to sell at the tracks...

"Alright," I said. And then we walked off, carrying our papers into the streets.

* * *

**Woods Races**

"The foist thing youse gotta loin is headlines don't sell papes; newsies sell papes." he explained once we reached the tracks. I never thought I would envy him like I did just then; in the time it took us to walk from there to here, he had sold more than half of his papers, while I still had all of mine. But that wasn't all that I learned; I learned how to improvise the truth.

"Extra! Extra! Brooklyn flooded, thousands of lives at stake!" I shouted, waving the paper above my head. Really, all it was was a water pipe had burst and now the streets were a bit wet, but aparently it was believable, because I sold about five of papers.

"Good enough," Race sighed, selling his last paper. I frowned, but then realized something that would help me sell faster: the jockey's knew who I was, and, obviously, so did my father. So if I continued to sell in the stands, then went and sold to them...

"Come with me," I said, grabbing his wrist and dragging Race through the stands. He really didn't know what was going on, but once I had sold most of my stuff and he figures out where I was going, he started to catch on.

"You're a genious!" he laughed, watching as I sold the last of my papers to the jockeys. They always read the newspaper, but never got to until the races closed.

"Thanks..." I trailed off, searching around for the stables. I wanted to see Coal, just to see if he would know who I was, even with the disguise. But Jersey got to me first.

"She yours?" Race asked as he watch me stroke the mare's mane. Technically, I owned both Coal and Jersey, so I wouldn't be lieing if I said yes.

"She's mine, and her mate is Nell's. She races pretty good for the only mare." I smiled. Jersey was the only mare at the tracks, and Coal was her mate. I found it funny that Race had chosen her as his favorite.

"Mate? You mean, Coal and her, they-"

"Yeah. Most of the horses here are hers."

He nodded his head. Two of the jockeys came in and took out the two horses for the next race. It got quiet after that. Even after we walked back into the stands to our usual spot, it was really uncomfortable.

"She won't want me to tell you this, but I know she won't anyway..." my voice was shaking as I said this. I looked over at Race, and only his eyes were looking at me. "The reason she isn't here, I mean. About our father." Now I had his full attention.

"Jason Woods isn't our real father."

* * *

A/N: Sucky ending, I know, but bear with me, okay? It's a bit confusing, too... and a little long... Anyway! I'm getting on the next chapter! And thank you everyone who reviewed! R&R! 


	5. Kiss Me In The Monlight

Disclaimer: I do not own Newsies, Disney does. I just own Nelly and her family.

* * *

**Nelly's PoV**

**Woods Races**

"My mom likes to say that our dad was magic. He came into her world so suddenly, yet heard the word 'twins' and disappeared. She was still young, and she still lived in Calabria. He was from Sicily, and he supposedly loved her. They weren't married or anything, they were just two young lovers, ya know? So, they did what people that are in love do, and me and Nelly was the result.

"Well, this guy was a jerk. When he found out my mom was pregnant, he almost threw her out the window. Literally. She has a scar on the back of her head from where it got hit off of. He didn't want kids, he wanted sex. So he just left before either of us were born.

"When we finally moved here, we were about three or four, and didn't really know who our father was. All we knew was that we had a mom. So, we didn't think anything of it until she got married to our step-dad. Then we started bothering her about who our real dad was. At first she just said we didn't have one, but then we broke her and she finally told us. I guess Nell's just scared, ya know? She doesn't like getting close to guys or anything like that. She's just afraid that'll happen again. But now the jackass is trying to reconnect with us, even though there really was nothing to connect with."

I guess my story really got to him, because he looked back at the track and didn't say anything. I don't blame him, really. The first time I told my friend Emily Elizabeth that story she didn't say anything either. But... I didn't really tell Racetrack the entire truth. My real dad never called me (when I told him before, I was referring to my step-dad, but when I said I hated him, I ment my real dad), and we're really not sure if he's even alive anymore. But whatever. It's just that... that wasn't all I lied about. I didn't tell him the truth about my brother.

I started to hear footsteps behind us, so I turned around. My dad was walking down the steps and waved for me to fallow him. So I did. I really didn't think Race would mind, seeing as how he wasn't paying any attention anyway. But maybe he would mind...

"Can I go back to being Nelly now?" I asked when we were out of earshot. My father frowned, not thinking it was the best idea. But I couldn't just see Race as just Nelson and not as Nelly for the whole day. I don't think I'd be able to. So my father just nodded, and I almost jumped on him.

When he walked back up the stairs, I looked back at race to make sure he wasn't watching. He was used to seeing me in guy clothes, so I really don't think he'd make the connection between me and myself. So I slipped the suspenders off of my shoulders and let them hang by my shorts. Then I untucked my shirt and undid my hair so it fell past my shoulder and fit the hat back on my head.

I felt more like a girl now, so I felt comfortable when I ran down the stairs, threw one arm around him, covered his eyes with my other hand, put my lips right next to his ear and said "Guess who. And if you get it wrong, I swear I'll hurt you."

* * *

He didn't ask me anything about my brother the whole night. No 'why didn't you tell me you had a brother' no 'guess whose a new newsie' and definately no 'why didn't you tell me about your father?' Everything went on like it always did. He almost fell over when I snuck up behind him, he guessed it was 'a crazy goil who needsta let me go,' and we made our usual bets. It was all back to normal. 

"So what took ya so long?" he finally asked. I just shrugged my shoulders, seeing as how he already heard my story. So he just nodded and we went back to the race.

Soon enough it was the last race of the evening. The sky was pitch black and the stars twinkled beautifully. Coal and Jersey were racing each other, yet again, and so I decided to make this bet a bit different.

"I win, you have to stay and help clean up. You win, you do whatever you want until you leave." I said. It was really a lousey bet, seeing as how I had to clean up anyway. But he agreed to it anyway, and we did the little spit shake thing.

This time, I didn't know who I wanted to win. If Coal won, Race'd stay until we left, but if he won, he'd... well, I know what I _want_ him to do, but that doesn't necessarily mean he _would_. Then again, you never know.

Once they started running, I swear I stopped breathing. Coal was in first, with Jersey right behind him. I didn't even cheer for him, I just stood there with wide eyes and lips squished together. They were neck and neck until the last quarter mile, where I shut my eyes closed. I couldn't watch. But I could hear. The place erupted with shouts, either of protest or of applause.

When I opened my eyes, I saw why; they didn't know who won. It was so close that they weren't sure. I just had to wait until someone announced the winner.

"Jersey!" my dad called from the track, raising the arm of the jockey. My head drooped momentarily, but then came back up when I looked at Racetrack.

"You won." I said simply.

He nodded. "An you lost."

I was going to nod, but something stopped me. I lost, and I didn't care. My horse lost, and I didn't care. I didn't care, because Anthony 'Racetrack' Higgins was kissing me.

* * *

A/N: Betcha expected that, huh? 


	6. River Jumps and Sleep Talking

Disclaimer: I do not own Newsies, Disney does. I just own Nelly and her family. And Emily Elizabeth!

* * *

**Racetrack's PoV**

**Manhattan Lodging House**

"How were da races, Race?" since I met Nelly, da rest of da guys in da house 'ave been buggin' me about 'er. Even Kloppman makes jokes about it. They think da only reason I go dere is because she's dere. It's not da only reason, but it is a pretty big one.

"Eh," I grumbled.

"Aww, ya goilfriend not dere?"

"She was dere."

"Den whats wrong?" Jack looked at me over one of da bunks. Sometimes I hate him for bein' so tall.

"Nothin's wrong,"

He studied me for a minute. Somethin' was buggin' me. I couldn't help but think she was keepin' somethin' from me. Technically, she was, but somethin' else...

"You kissed 'er!" Jack finally announced. My face felt warm now, seein' as how it was true.

"Yeah," I gave in. The udda guys started cheerin' I guess, but I hada lotta stuff on me mind ta think about.

_'Tamarra...' _I thought.

* * *

**Nelly's PoV**

**-Next Day-**

**Central Park**

I got out of there fast after I bought my papers. I couldn't look at him without keeping my heart inside my chest. It was pretty hard to get out, though. Once the bell rang, I ran through the gates and paid for my papers, but then got caught when I was trying to leave. Race called me, but I pretended if I didn't hear him, which wasn't convincing, seeing as how he chased after me once he got his papers. But he quit once I ran far enough into the park. But I still couldn't help but think someone was following me...

Which I found odd, because I was following someone myself.

Not only was Central Park just about the best place to sell stuff (I sold all my papers within an hour), but it's also the place where my best friend Emily Elizabeth walked her dog Pommy every day.

It's pretty easy for me to spot Emily Elizabeth, even if I haven't seen her for a couple of months. She always wore this light blue skirt with a white blouse, and her blond hair had this thin blue ribbon in it. Really, she looked like just about every other girl in New York, but there was something completely different about Emily Elizabeth. And that was her southern accent.

"Pommy, do you eva get the feelin' that you're bein' watched?"

And it wasn't just a southern accent; Emily Elizabeth considered herself to be a southern belle, a more sophisticated person of the south. It irritated me to no extent, but that's why I loved her!

So I kept following her through her normal route and she had no idea I was there. At least not until I stepped on a twig. She gasped loudly, Pommy started yapping, and she swirled around. I honestly think Emily Elizabeth is the biggest overreactor that I know. Which is how I knew that when she swirled, I turned away and looked at the rest of the park. While doing so I caught a glimpse of a guy doing the same thing I was. He was sort of tall, with a really ugly mustache. I knew him from somewhere...

"Excuse me, but do I know you?" Emily Elizabeth was also very straight foreward, another thing I liked about her. I looked at her through the corner of my eye and winked at her, a reassuring signal we came up with when I first met her. She gasped again, and this time threw her arms around me. "Oh my! Nelly Woods, I haven't-"

"Shh!" I pressed my hand over her mouth, my eyes looking over at the shady guy that was following me. She nodded her head to tell me she understood, and we began walking at a faster pace then before.

"Who is he?" she asked me in a whisper, referring to the guy behind us.

"I'll tell you later, just keep walking." I knew who he was; he was... oh, what was his name? Delancey, or something. I wasn't about to tell Emily Elizabeth all about that just yet. She knew about what really happened to my brother, but she didn't know about the newsie thing. Or about Racetrack.

"Okay, Em, I need you to listen to me," we had made it out of the park and were now on the streets. I was leading her to... well, I'm really not sure where I was leading her to, but I was leading her to somewhere. "You need to let go of Pommy. He knows his way home. Let him go."

Her face became very pale when I said that. She lost Pommy multiple times in Central Park, and he always found his way back home, but she was still terrified of losing her dog.

"Trust me." I said softly, and she let him go.

"Go home, Pommy." she said simply. The bundle of white fur scurried away from us. When I checked behind us to see if the guy that was fallowing us was still there, he wasn't. I found this strange until Emily Elizabeth stopped. I turned around to see him standing in front of us.

"Em, I think we should run." I said as I grabbed her arm. We bolted across the street, then down an alley and up another street. Before we knew it we were standing on the bank of the Hudson River, the Delancey right behind us. Now I didn't know what to do, or where to go.

"No. I am not jumping into that river, if that's what you're thinking. Nelly Cecilia Woods, if you think I'm that-" I cut her off mid-rant by pushing her into the river and jumping in after her. I didn't expect the current to be so strong, though, because it forced me against the wall and I hit my head.

After that, everything went black.

* * *

**Manhattan Lodging House**

"Now and... hour of our death... amen..."

I woke up, babbling, to see hundreds of eyes staring at me. I only recognized two pairs.

"Do you know that you talk in your sleep?" Emily Elizabeth asked me. I nodded my head slowly, but it hurt like hell.

"Hail Mary, yeah, why?" I blinked my eyes, trying to register where I was. There were about twenty bunks lined up in two rows, and I was lieing on one of them. But that was about all I noticed until I closed my eyes again. My head felt like it got run over by a truck, and my vision wasn't exactly the best. But I could hear the snickering in the room quite fine.

"Honey, that's not all you were saying." Em chuckled lightly at what she was hearing. I listened carefully. There were guys talking in high pitched, mocking voices saying things like 'oh Racetrack!' and things like that. _That_ was when I sat up and really opened my eyes and looked around. Emily Elizabeth was sitting on the foot on the bed I was on and the newsies that I sold papers with were on the bunks around us. Racetrack was leaning against the post that I was facing, his head turned towards me. He had a... weird expression on his face that I couldn't really understand.

"What?" I asked, feeling my forehead with my palm. I didn't understand why people were looking at me until I realized what I felt. Hair, not a hat. My fingers ran through my bangs (they were cut so my hair is all the same length) and brought them foreward so my face wasn't visable. I shook my head, trying to clear my field of vision, but it wasn't working out too well, so Em just poked my head with both of her index fingers and pushed my hair out of my eyes.

"Thank you..." I trailed off and looked at my hands, which were clutching Racetrack's hat. It was then that I realized why they were staring at me. I was a girl, dressed as a guy. I got a really horrified look on my face before I spoke again.

"Ah shit!" I grumbled before I fell over again.

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A/N: This chapter was a bit long... didja like it!?!? 'Cause I know you enjoyed the last one. It's a bit longer, and definately more confusing, so if you have questions, feel free to ask! I love all of you that submitted reviews! R&R! 


	7. Once Upon a December

Disclaimer: I do not own Newsies, Disney does. I just own Nelly and her family. And Emily Elizabeth!

* * *

**Nelly's PoV**

**Manhattan Lodging House - Roof**

"Okay, now, let me get this straight: you're pretendin' to be a boy because your mother got fired from her job and your step-father told you to?"

I nodded my head for what felt like the thousandth time that day. Really, Emily Elizabeth was one to grasp things pretty quickly, but she didn't seem to understand this all too much. And they say the older the wiser.

"I think I understand it now,"

"Finally. Now, how'd we get here?" it was a question I'd been meaning to ask her. I don't remember anything after I hit the wall, except for the scene that just unfolded in the bunkroom. I could only hope Emily Elizabeth was conscience.

"Oh, that, well, first of all, you are a very stupid little girl. Did you not learn your lesson from the last time you jumped into a river? The same thing happened then, too; you hit your head on the bank. I swear it's a miracle you don't get concuss-"

"Can we skip the flashback and get back to the subject?"

"Oh, right, that. Well, after you push me in -thank you, by the way- and you jumped in, you hit your head and passed out. Then you started sinking, so I grabbed you and carried you on my back while trying to look for somewhere to swim. I knew we were by the Brooklyn Bridge, so that ment we were by Brooklyn. Do you realize how heavy you are? Swimming with you on my back gave me one hell of a workout. I wouldn't be surprised if my-"

"Em!" I snapped. I knew how much I weighed, but I also knew how weightless people were in water. I just wanted to hear the story.

"Sorry. Anyway, I knew that if I followed the Brooklyn Bridge, I'd find Brooklyn. And Brooklyn has a dock. And people were on that dock. So I started swimming towards it, but after a while I got tired, and my leg cramped, among other things. So I started shouting for help. Then I went under.

While I was under there, I guess someone must have grabbed us both, 'cause next thing I knew we were lieing on the docks, coughing. Well, I was, you weren't responding. So I started doing compressions on your stomach, and you don't want to know what came out. It was disgusting! But you were breathing, so it didn't matter.

"This boy saved me. He said his name was Spot, and he has the most... gorgeous eyes ever," Emily Elizabeth trailed off, and I thought I lost her until she started talking again. "I told him who we were, and he said he knew your name. I guess that boyfriend of yours talks about you a lot or something, 'cause Spot said he knew where to bring you."

_'Wow,'_ I thought, '_some guy who doesn't even know us taking pity on us. That's both... thoughtful and pittyful.'_

"Wow," I said. "And how long was I talking before I woke up?" I asked.

Emily Elizabeth looked at me and smiled, then looked away and mumbled something.

"Excuse me?"

"Half hour."

"Dammit!" I hit the cement with my fist. We were sitting on the roof, trying both to dry off and hide. Well, I was hiding, Em was just sitting. You don't realize that your clothes stick to you when you're wet until you're in a room filled with guys... it's pretty embarassing.

"I know something that'll cheer you up," Em said, standing. She shook her body, water droplet flying from her hair and clothes. Then she smoothed out her skirt and blouse and held out her hand. "May I have this dance?"

I nearly fell over; Em and I had taken dance lessons one summer, and this was the first time in a very long time that we actually did something together. So I laughed and stood up.

I placed my left hand on her shoulder, and she put her's on my waist, them we held our right hands together. It was a ballroom dancing class that we took, so even if it _looked_ weird, it felt perfectly normal.

**"Dancing bears,  
Painted wings,  
Things I almost remember,"**

I almost gasped once we started moving; she was singing my favorite song to both sing and dance to! I came in right after she did. Little did we know at the time that we had an audience.

**"****And a song someone sings  
Once upon a December.**

**Someone holds me safe and warm.  
Horses prance through a silver storm.  
Figures dancing gracefully  
Across my memory...**

**Someone holds me safe and warm.  
Horses prance through a silver storm.  
Figures dancing gracefully  
Across **_(across)_** my mem **_(my mem)_

**Far away, long ago,  
Glowing dim as an ember,  
Things my heart  
Used to know,  
Things it yearns to remember...**

**And a song  
Someone sings  
Once upon a December"**

We let go of each other and bowed.Then we heard clapping. I gasped and looked up to see Race, Jack, Skittery, Mush, some boy I didn't know, and Kid Blink standing in the doorway, clapping. I swollowed and gave Em a paniced look, but she didn't seem to be phased by it. When I gave her a questioning look, she only shrugged.

"I've had a curtain fall on my head." she explained. I nodded, not understanding how that was embarassing. "At my catillion." she continued.

"Oh," now I understood that.

"Hey, uh, Nel, can I tawk ta you?" Racetrack asked. I looked at Emily Elizabeth, who pretended to be more interested in her nails than my looks. So I sighed and nodded my head. "In private," it was a demand, not a question. Now Em was looking at me, a small smirk on her face. She followed the boys down the stairs.

"Wouldja mind explainin' ta me what happened?" he asked.

"I was walking with Emily Elizabeth -that's her, by the way- in Central Park, 'cause we were walking her dog Pommy. Then all of a suden my brother taps me on the shoulder and shoves your hat on my head and runs off. I guess some guy was chasing him, 'cause then he was chasing us and we jumped into the Hudson River. I hit my head and was knocked out, then I woke up here." I explained. "there's nothing more to it."

Race nodded, taking it all in. I was starting to wonder if he believed me or not until I heard a crack of thunder, saw a flash of lightning, and rain started pouring down on my head.

"Ah!" I yelped, throwing my arms around his torso and squeezing him. He just stared down at me and didn't move or say anything. I started laughing until it thundered again, which made me squeeze him tighter.

"Don't like thunder storms, huh?" he chuckled. I was shaking in his arms. You could say I didn't like them... or you could say I was down right terrified of them.

"Terrified. That's the word." I nodded. And it was just the thunder that bothered me; I used to always dance around in the rain and count the seconds between lightning, but thunder... it brought back bad memories.

"Let's go inside, then." he laughed. And we did.

* * *

"Straight flush, in spades," I could hear Emily Elizabeth's smirk even while walking -and at some points jumping- down the steps. She was the best Poker player I have ever met, not to mention the person who taught me how to play. And I could see that she had beaten the boys out of most of their money, or lack there of. 

And then it thundered again.

"Mommy!" I shrieked, and dashed across the room and ran into Emily Elizabeth, sending the herself and the chair she was sitting in to the floor. I heard snickering, but I was too busy shaking. Em just frowned.

"You've got seriouse thunder issues, honey," she said, but I knew she meant nothing bad by it. She was just stating the facts.

"Why is she so jumpy?" Race asked.

Em hesitated before answering. "She almost lost her brother during a thunder storm when they came over from Italy."

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A/N: Bah, I don't like this chapter zP But, whatever! What I think doesn't matter (even though it does). What matters is what you think! And please, if you want to read something else, read and review my one shot My Strongest Suit. I won't disappoint you, I promise. 


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